(1.) THE Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, Cochin Bench, has referred the following question of law for our opinion :
(2.) THE assessment years with which we are concerned are 1966-67 and 1967-68 and the question that arises for decision is whether for imposition of a penalty it is the law of the assessment year that governs or not. THE facts as stated in the statement of the case are these. For the assessment year 1966-67, the assessee filed on February 13, 1967, a return declaring a loss of Rs. 85,000. On June 13, 1968, it filed a revised return declaring an income of Rs. 22,642. THE Income-tax Officer determined the total income at Rs. 1,39,580.
(3.) REFERENCE to the decision of the Cochin Bench is to be found a little earlier in the order of the Tribunal as follows :